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Politics : War -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Thomas M. who wrote (3533)	9/12/2001 3:50:41 PM
From: Rollcast...	Respond to of 23908

In Baghdad, Iraqi state television hailed the attacks as "a natural reaction to American rulers hegemony, deception and foolishness." In a broadcast monitored by the BBC the television station said: "The American cowboy is reaping the fruits of his crimes against humanity." ________________________________________ Sounds just like your posts.

To: Thomas M. who wrote (3533)	9/12/2001 7:14:20 PM
From: Hawkmoon	Read Replies (3) \| Respond to of 23908

Thomas... I want you sit back, read what I'm about to write, and think VERY HARD about what I'm about to say. There is NO DOUBT that certain governments and media types have attempted to shape public opinion for their own benefit. There is substantial evidence of this over the history of mankind.. Pundits professing this or that belief, about a given issue. Leaders "massaging" how information is shaped and revealed for public consumption. But there is another side to such manipulation of information and we saw it yesterday. The news media ONLY showed the impact of the aircraft, and the collapse of the buildings. HOWEVER, they didn't show the numerous people who LEAPED out of the twin towers to their deaths in order to avoid being burned alive. News reporters were directly told NOT to release such footage out of fear of the uproar that might result. Might it just be possible that a far worse crime for the media to hold back the brutal reality from the public of exactly how gruesome an end many of these people met? Is it not a form of manipulation ommitted such horrific, but factual, scenes that might cause even more of an uncontrollable uproar from the American people?? Can we not say that for every act of deliberate manipulation aimed at justifying some US policy, that there might be an ommission of information that could cause events to assume a life of their own, thus forcing government leadership to assume more aggressive a stance than they desire? "Propaganda" can be both good or bad. And sure it can be manipulated for cynical reasons. But while accepting that, we can not ignore the value of positive propaganda that unites public opinion behind its leadership during a time of crisis. It can exist to present the facts in a manner where every individual is fully informed about what is at stake, why we're fighting, and why we're being asked to make the sacrifices. It serves to remind us that, while we may differ on the "nuances", we must recognize that their exists a greater cause that must be united behind. So you can quote Chomsky all that you want, and try to make a simple truth as complex as you want. But the past is the past and it is history generated in a different time, by different leaders, under their own complex web of political and commerical influences. But what happened yesterday was a very simple, but brutal, act of war. Possibly 10-20,000 lives snuffed out, and a government afraid that if they show the actual horror of what occurred, might find its citizenry demanding quicker and more aggressive action than they are yet willing to take. So there are very good reasons that the "herd" of humanity must be "managed" at times in order to prevent an even more gruesome set of reactions by the people. And you only have to look at the fear of the muslim community in the US to see it.... They are afraid for their lives and for their place in this nation. Many are afraid that the US will permit a relapse of how we handled the Japanese during the WWII.. So thus, there are very good reasons to manage information at times, even if to maintain a semblance of surrealness to the events, rather than slapping us in the face the horrible reality. Hawkmoon